Gaming machines are popular entertainment devices. Present gaming machines provide an opportunity for a user to play a variety of popular games on the machines, such as fruit machines or slot-type games, video adaptations of standard card games like poker and blackjack, and many other types of games.
Modem gaming machines are coupled to a gaming network that performs many management type functions, such as accounting, game tracking, player tracking, and bonusing. Players who identify themselves to the gaming network accumulate bonus points by playing the games. Accumulated bonus points can be later converted into machine credits or cash, thus providing bonusing systems encourages players to identify themselves to the gaming network.
Present gaming networks communicate directly with either an identified or non-identified player by displaying messages on a video display mounted to the gaming machine itself. The player can input text and answer network-generated questions by using a keyboard that is mounted to the gaming machine near the display, or by making selections on a touchscreen display.
Additionally, a player can retrieve information about his or her bonus account by communicating with a casino employee, who in turn can access the gaming network. Generally, the employee can access portions of the gaming network quickly by using a computer terminal that has a secure login. For security, players cannot access the gaming network directly, other than at the game itself.
Although casinos try to staff customer service booths with enough employees to attend to all players' needs, it is difficult to accurately project how many employees will be needed at any given time. Having too many employees causes a casino to incur high labor costs, and reduces casino profits. Having too few employees can lead to customer frustration by having to wait for available employees to help the player. This can lead to the player not returning to the casino, also reducing casino profits.
Another way casinos lose business is by not being able to monitor and interact with players as they are playing. For instance, casinos generally have a slow period between 4:00 and 6:00 pm, that is, over the period when many people eat dinner. During these times casino patrons are preparing for or are eating dinner, and consequently, fewer players are playing the machines in the casino. Sometimes, as players are readying to leave for dinner, casino employees walk around the casino floor and offer food coupons to the players that are only valid beginning several hours from the present time. The casino offers the coupons in an effort to entice the player to remain at the game through the typically slow period. Again, because making such offers requires personnel actively monitoring players and then issuing the coupons to players, labor costs tend to limit the ability of casinos to provide such services.
Embodiments of the invention address these and other deficiencies in casino gaming systems.